Lead the Way
by chichai
Summary: Strength sleeps in all young hearts and awakens with the master's teachings.[ONESHOT]


-close hand over. Big smile- aw! Arigatou T.a.K!! So ka kimi wa watashi no tomodachi. –laf- sorry if the Japanese is rong, languages rnt my strong point but hey tryn n getn it rongs betr than not tryn n nvr noin if I coda got it rite (which I usually do –grin- …if u define usually as least onc a month…sumtimes even less than that but lets not b so piky!) Yeah I no wat u mean about the symbols not goin up it's the same on my side that's y I gota put my actions in the wee dash things instead of the faces –pout- mou! -laf- T.a.K ur 1 of the vry few peepl that don't leav me confusd so..jst bare that in mind ok?

I h8 2 b the barer of bad news but I'm not gona put that othr story up, I rote it n its way2…eh personal…sorry evry1. Also I mite take ages ritin more storys coz stuffs hectic n I'm practically failing everything at skool coz I jst cant b bothered anymore. So apologies once again, plz stil love me n my stories!! -laf-

Ok there's a few OC's in this so here's their names; Dhesi, Aaliyah and Choi. Hope you like it!

_Italics_ - thoughts

… … … - new scene

**Lead the Way**

The sun revealed the small dust and skin particles that floated around the room as Kai hammered into the worn out leather of the punch back. The black bandages protecting his knuckles slowly fell apart leaving his knuckles vulnerable to the stinging collision between bone and leather. The sting soon turned to a warm surfacing of bright red blood which left itself meekly beneath his knuckles as Kai's pace lost its momentum. He sighed and rested his forehead against the slowly steadying punch bag before walking over to the gym benches as he unwrapped the clammy bandages from his knuckles. The week had been long, a total waste of time in Kai's opinion, but he'd get through it anyway. The gym doors swung open with a quiet admiration and Kai sighed giving a short wave of the hand to acknowledge the new presence in the room.

"Hey." A quiet voice ebbed its way through the empty air as delicate fingers fidgeted with a silver blade.

"D'you wanna get started?" Kai's voice came out softer than usual. Choi was his mentee for the week, courtesy of Hiro; she was nice enough and seemed to want to get good unlike Kari and Ray's mentees.

"Mm hm." Choi nodded nervously as she watched Kai throw the bandages on the floor. Kai's hands moved quickly as he pulled Dranzer from his pocket and spun around to face Choi who stood in a confused school girl poise. Kai rolled his eyes.

"You're here to blade. Not stand about; I could get a dog to do that." Kai dropped his arms to his side and walked forward to Choi. "You have your blade right?" Choi nodded pulling out her blade holding it up to Kai who took it sighing. She must have been practising last night but how she got it so messed up was really beyond him. He clicked his tongue turning his back on Choi to make his way to the sun shadowed benches. The bench creaked slightly with age as he sat down and started to dismantle the blade to find the root of the problem as well as noting the attack ring needed some serious attention. It took a few seconds for Kai to realise Choi stood swinging from side to side on the other side of the room as she clung onto a small teddy she must have took out of her bag. Choi soon noticed the clinking of metal and his steely gaze making the temperature drop slightly.

"Hi." She waved and laughed nervously making Kai soften a little at the charm her shining eyes and simplicity brought to her character.

"Get over here," He beckoned moving over a tad for her. "Blading isn't only about winning matches it's about knowing how to mend and improve your blade as well as understanding everything about it."

"Oh." She murmured perching herself onto the very edged of the bench about four inches from Kai.

"You're not gonna see anything from there." Kai smirked at how nervous she was. He could just imagine how she would change once she realised the strength she had if she started to believe in it. Choi shuffled up a bit more but was still at least half a continent away. Kai placed the blade to his left and reached over to Choi pulling her right beside him. "Watch carefully ok?" Choi looked up at Kai scrunching her eyes shut for a nano second while giving a dimpled smile. Kai smiled for the split second she couldn't see but his voice kept to his normal temperament. "Not me, the blade." Choi blushed and wrapped her arms around Kai's.

"Ok Kai sempai."

… … …

Dhesi looked in the mirror as he sculpted his black hair to perfection in his wait for Kari. Takao and Daichi were seriously freaked; this kid was only nine at the most but he was acting like a girl crazed maniac. Takao didn't see why he was after Kari, he may have been her mentee but she hated him more than she hated Takao, Daichi and Max put together; something that was not easily done.

"Do my teeth look yellow?" Dhesi asked shoving his face right into Takao's and flashing impressively white sharp gnashers. Daichi sniggered quietly at Takao's misfortune as he scooped up a magazine so he could pretend he could read it upside down. Takao looked away wanting to smack Daichi over the head and held his breath at the unbearable strength of the mint mouthwash.

"No but your breaths a bit too minty." Takao admitted as Dhesi raced back over to the mirror as he panicked at the thought of not seeing his face for more than four seconds. Takao looked over at Daichi before feel a heavy material thud over his head. He pulled it off angrily to see Dhesi growling at him for insulting his excellence.

"I know what's going on here." Dhesi rolled up his little designer sleeves and pulled out his blade. "You want Kari for yourself don't you???" Takao and Daichi looked at each other sharing a second of stunned silence before shaking the room's walls with roars of laughter that were accompanied with tears of hilarity as they fell off their seats and rolled about laughing. Dhesi watched Daichi and Takao clutching at their ribs and kicking the ground to articulate their amusement at the idea.

"You-and-Kari!!!" Daichi stuttered in between his heavy laughter as he hammered the carpeted floor as the laughter got to the point it put him into a mild pain.

"STOP LAUGHING!!!" Dhesi reddened as he realised maybe his conspiracy theory was a mile off base. Kari's figure came into his line of vision as she entered the room and looked at the human hyenas - his heart fluttered at her disapprovingly numb facial expression.

_Pathetic. _ She stepped forward taking great care to step on Takao's fingers as she passed him. Takao howled as his laughter still lived on in Dhesi's ears. Kari glanced over at him quickly - he was a kid that really didn't know what age he was or how to control his feelings. She took pity on him as his small eyes gathered crystal tears as Daichi kept laughing.

"Ach shut it!!" Kari bellowed as her foot made for Daichi's head deliberately missing so she could put the fear of God into him, which she successfully done. Daichi shot up creating a helmet by wrapping his arms around his head.

"Are you trying to give me brain damage???"

_There's no brain to damage._ Kari denied Daichi a recognizable reaction and turned to look at Dhesi who leeched himself onto her in a tight hug. Kari sighed putting the heel of her hand on his forehead and pushing him away. Dhesi looked up at her grinning; to his young naive mind her actions spelt out fondness instead of an excuse to hit Takao and Daichi.

"Kari I'd like to share something with you." Dhesi took Kari by the hand making Takao and Daichi collapse against each other as they tried to hold in their laughter at Kari's bewildered face. Dhesi led her over to a chair which she wouldn't sit down in.

_Ah, she's playing hard to get._ Dhesi smirked loving the challenge. Takao and Daichi looked at each other wide and watery eyed as they desperately held themselves together. Dhesi pulled over a chair and climbed onto it so he could be at eye level with his love. He cleared his throat as Daichi and Takao raced over to sit nearby and watch what was going on.

"I've made a poem for you." Kari's blood froze at his words while Dhesi pulled out a small square piece of paper with a messy black scrawl on it. Dhesi began to recite,

"O' my beloved Kari, one day I want to drive you in my Ferrari,

or would you rather a Maserati?

O' my beloved Kari, you hide that it's true,

that Kai, your buffoon, is not good enough for you.

O' my beloved Kari, I want you to have my son."

Dhesi gave the cheekiest smile he could give and nudged Kari suggestively,

"definitely more than one!

O' my beloved Kari,"

Dhesi knelt down on the chair whipping a red rose from his pocket and placing it in his mouth and mumbling the remainder of his poem,

"I'm goin' down on one knee, and askin' you to marry me!!"

Kari raised her eyebrow completely stupefied by what the kid had just done and at Takao and Daichi's insensitivity as they openly returned to their rolling hilarity. Kari shook her head and left the room without a second thought or glance back at her admirer.

…_..Kari…._ Dhesi's little eyes welled up making him look vulnerable and abandoned. He gave small sobs as his tears slowly crawled for his tear ducts and onto his cheeks. Takao and Daichi slowly stopped as the little boy curled up on the floor crying his heart out.

"Hey it's alright." Takao made his way over to Dhesi looking down at him with pity. For some reason it struck a raw nerve with Takao to see such a young person feel a confusing heartbreak that most adults couldn't take or understand.

"How do you know???" Dhesi snapped between snottery sobs. "You've never had your heart wrenched from your chest and stamped on like it was nothing but dirt!!!"

"Yes I do!!!" Takao sat by Dhesi's side letting his eyes go wide with a long concealed childhood heartache. "It was such a beautiful day," He began grabbing Dhesi's and Daichi's attention and creating a story time atmosphere. "The sun was shining, the girls were doin' the crap that girls do and the boys were being productive, except for this one guy who was really weird n picked his nose and then wiped it under the wall," Takao went off in another direction with a creased face. He shook the image from his head, "Anyways, it was playtime and…and…that's when I went to find her…to find the only woman I ever wanted to see when I wasn't at class…hell I even thought of her when I was in class..." His voice filled with emotion that made Daichi and Dhesi's mouths drop open slightly as they leaned forward to hear more. "…But she wasn't there that day…and…I never saw her again…"

"Wh-who was she?" Daichi asked on the verge of tears.

"Kokuro-san, she was in charge of tuck and giving out lunch." Daichi and Dhesi shared a look of disbelief at the anticlimax of what they thought was going to be one of Takao's rare gut wrenching stories. Takao gave a loud cry of anguish and flew at Dhesi and Daichi for a group hug. "My first and last true love!" He gave a little squeal as he took a gulp, "Chocolate's never tasted the same since she left me!!"

… … …

The thudding pain entered Ray's temples as Aaliyah jumped up and down on the settee singing the wrong lyrics to that irritating pop song over and over again. How could Hiro have picked such a deranged monster to be his mentee?? Aaliyah swung her arms up to get higher into the petrified air that could see what was coming. A small scream sent Ray dashing into the living room where he found a curled up ball of brown hair crying hysterically.

"Are you ok??" He got to her side and pulled her up sweeping her hair from her face a second after she cackled in amusement.

"Your face!!!" She pointed at Ray who put her down roughly and then walked away not seeing the hilarity in her act. "Oh come on can't you take a joke??"

"That's like asking you to shut your damn mouth." He snarled back as he realised she was following him into the kitchen. Aaliyah growled at him slamming a chair out from under the table and sitting down heatedly. Ray's tiger fangs sank into his lower lip as he restrained himself from throwing the little madam head first out the closed window. He picked up a sharp knife and began to slice the peppers. Aaliyah gave a short gulp as the zing of the fresh sharp metal seemed like a hidden threat from the guy she had given the hardest of hard times to. She sat back in the chair looking over at him as he gritted his teeth turning on the gas and starting to fry peppers, bean sprouts and onions. Aaliyah smirked while Ray busied himself making noodles and a few side dishes. She knew he wasn't happy at having to make food for them both but he done it out of amicability, something her spiteful nature wanted to get the better of.

"I don't like peppers." Aaliyah pointed out smirking, "And I'm allergic to carbohydrates." Ray sighed and pushed himself away from the cooker forcing a smile to light up his face.

"They're not for you anyway." Aaliyah glared at him as he crossed his arms returning an amber eyed stare that showed nothing but total indifference to her. She gave a pout and looked away from him giving him the perfect opportunity to smile; this round was definitely his.

"So when are you teaching me how to blade?" She snapped, "Isn't that what I'm here for?"

"Thought blading was for ugly guys who couldn't get girls."

"Do I look like a guy?" Aaliyah stood up putting her hands on her hips. Ray gave a brief laugh and shook his head taking Drigger out of his pocket.

"Your words, not mine." Aaliyah stomped her foot and headed out of the back door being followed by a swaggering Ray who finally seemed to be winning.

"Move it I've not got all day!!" She fired at him throwing herself down on a patch of grass and waiting for Ray to begin with their first lesson in what seemed like a lifetime of mentoring. Being nice to this little monster obviously wasn't paying off; she'd learn to respect others and blading after Ray was done with her.

"So," He started pushing the rip cord into the launcher, "what's the first rule of blading?"

"Well you're the teacher, you tell me." She titled her head giving the smart ass comment. Ray drew his tongue over his teeth giving an irritated smile.

"If that's the way you want to play it." He clicked his blade into place and stepped forward. "Get your blade out." He ordered. Aaliyah looked at him dumbstruck. Ray groaned, "You don't even have a blade?? You knew you were coming here for a week of training and you never even brought a blade?" Ray shook his head as she looked at him with an expression that showed she couldn't care less. "Shows what a genius you are(!)"

"It's not me that plays with stupid blades!" She yelled at him as he went back inside. Aaliyah's face tripped for the fifteen minutes Ray was inside but she changed it the minute he flickered past the window and returned outside.

"Here." He threw her an old but perfectly decent blade that she turned her nose up at instantly. Ray lost it, "Shut it and use it before I really give you something to pull a face at!" Aaliyah crossed her arms adamant that she wasn't going to do anything. Ray shook his head pulling Drigger up to launching height.

"You're just gonna have to learn the hard way then." He shot Drigger out carefully calculating the near hit that scared the shit out of her. She ran off out of Drigger's way. Ray grinned,

_You're not getting out of this that easy!_ He continued to torment her and watched Drigger zip after her with an impish pleasure.

"Oh come on Aaliyah, you told me to teach you the first lesson."

"This isn't teaching!!! This is bullying!!!" She hollered skipping about as Drigger weaved in out snapping at her ankles.

"Bullying? You don't know the meaning of that, because that involves having a heart to break." Aaliyah looked at him with a hurt look but Ray wouldn't fall for it; she'd cried wolf so many times that he wouldn't answer her wounded cries anymore.

"Why are you doing this?"

"To teach you the first rule in blading! The first rule in everything! The thing that makes blading and blades anything but stupid!!" A blaze of blading spirit engulfed Ray's eyes, "You have to look at the depth of everything and never underestimate the value that someone puts their heart and soul into, even if you know it's worthless! When you learn that maybe then I'll go easy on you but until you put your blade where you're arrogant big mouth is I'll hammer you with hard times, just like you've probably done to everyone else that's not been exactly like you!" Aaliyah watched Ray in silence still feeling Drigger's cutting edge an inch from her skin. Ray eased off as her silence told him she was honestly considering the words he'd said. "Get your blade out, it looks like you're ready to learn."

… … …

Hiro gave an impressed laugh. They had actually pulled it off… well kinda. Dhesi still seemed more fascinated with Kari than blading but hopefully, for Kari's sake, that would wear off with time or distance. Kai looked down at Choi who clutched onto her blade with nerves and anticipation. She really didn't want to disappoint him when he'd taught her so much. Kai gave her a pat on the shoulder,

"You'll do fine kid." Hiro heard Kai's words and his eyes widened slightly. This experience probably affected the bladers maturity as well as their mentees. Hiro scrunched up his face at the sight of Daichi with straws up his nostrils making seal impressions and Takao who was taking bets on who would win the upcoming battle.

_They're my next project _Hiro thought itching his head and not really understanding how Daichi and Takao could possibly be the Beyblading champions when they acted so stupid. He checked his watch and tutted

_Maybe I should've put Aaliyah with Kai and not Ray, she is quite a hand full…_ Just as his thoughts were processed a stronger looking Ray smoothly introduced himself to the Bladebreakers' sight followed by a worn out Aaliyah.

"Are we late?" She asked eager to start. Hiro shook his head looking over at Choi who was raring to go and Dhesi who fluttered his eyelashes constantly at Kari who stared aimlessly at the sky. Choi and Aaliyah both took their places at the dish while Dhesi stayed behind still besotted with what he thought was Kari's "treat 'em mean keep 'em keen" attitude.

"Dhesi?" Hiro tried to get his attention but failed to bring him out of his Kari stupor. Kai narrowed his eyes and strode over to the little guy and lifted him by the collar with one arm, kicking and screaming, to the dish. When Kai plopped Dhesi down on his feet he was thanked with a course of bravado that Kai found even more annoying than Takao's frequent banter.

"She's only not with me to not leave you out! But one day she'll be mine and you'll be left in the gutter like the rat you are!!" Dhesi finished pulling out his blade readying himself to blade. Kai looked down at him wanting to squash him like a fly. How in the hell did Kari cope with this ugly duckling all week??

"Alright kiddos," Hiro smiled at them taking off his jacket, "Let's see the next generation in action!" Dhesi, Aaliyah and Choi stood with their hands twitching to pull at their rip cords as Hiro counted them down. "3-2-1...**_LET IT RIP!!_**"


End file.
